America's lead in AI is real. But one of the people who helped shape its policy says that lead is very thin.
David Sacks, the former White House AI czar, put a number on it: six to nine months.
On Larry Kudlow's show Monday, Sacks said the US is "only six to nine months ahead of China. So really, every month counts."
His fear is that a heavy rule book could wipe out that slim lead. As he put it, "if you try to have an FDA for AI... then I think we could lose this AI race to China."
The FDA is the agency that tests new drugs for years before they reach the public. Sacks thinks that kind of slow gate would be a mistake for AI.
In short, he wants speed over caution. He thinks the US can fix real problems as they come up, not before.
To him, the race with China is the whole point. He wants the US to stay in front, not fall behind.
We track how Washington's AI moves hit the market every morning in Market Briefs, and joining comes with a free investing masterclass.
His comments came after Trump signed an executive order last week. It sets up a voluntary plan where AI companies show some advanced models to the government before a wide release.
The plan is voluntary for now, not a hard law. Sacks wants to keep it that way and asked for a light touch.
He compared Washington's urge to police AI to its push on climate change, and called it a fix for a problem with "very little evidence to support it." In his view, fear is running ahead of the facts.
He also wants one federal rule book instead of a patchwork of state laws. A patchwork means many sets of rules, while one clear rule book would be easier for firms to follow.
Why push so hard right now? Sacks thinks the race with China is close, so slow rules would hand China the lead.
Sacks did admit some new models raise real safety concerns. He pointed to Anthropic's Mythos model, which he called one "at the level of a cyber weapon."
But he warned against what he called a "moral panic." On jobs, he pushed back on the fear that AI will throw people out of work, and pointed to a strong May jobs report of about 172,000 new jobs.
Not everyone agrees with him. Some experts warn that fast, light rules could let real risks slip through.
The stakes are high for AI stocks too. Loose rules could speed up new launches, while tight rules could slow the whole field down.
Trump is set to meet with the heads of the top AI firms at the White House this week.
Sacks says every month counts, and Washington's next move is due in days.
Get the policy news that moves stocks in your inbox - join Market Briefs here, and a 45-minute investing course is included free.
